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-   -   Mandrake Linux 9.1 on a Dell Inspiron 2650 (https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/linux-laptop-and-netbook-25/mandrake-linux-9-1-on-a-dell-inspiron-2650-a-80762/)

If6was9 08-10-2003 06:41 PM

Mandrake Linux 9.1 on a Dell Inspiron 2650
 
I posted this here already:

http://forum.microsuck.com/cgi-bin/u...c&f=5&t=002072

I should mention that I got a second hard drive (8 GB) for use with the laptop in order to have a backup and to experiment with. I had 3 partitions on the 8 GB hard drive with Windows 98 SE on the c drive already. I still have the 20 GB hard drive that originally came with the laptop with Windows XP on it. Looking around on the internet I found posts by other people about trying to get Windows 98 working on the Dell Inspiron 2650. I couldn't find any video drivers that work with Windows 98 on the laptop. Almost nothing works in Windows 98 (no Win98 drivers). I even had to run a program that sets up autoexec.bat and config.sys to make the CDROM work in Windows 98. I finally put the laptop under my couch for a couple months and had the idea of trying Linux on the laptop eventually. I've been reading about Linux for years and used Windows on various PCs since 1994 (starting with 3.1 and now using mostly 98SE). Before installing Mandrake Linux 9.1 I formatted the c drive, but during installation it wanted to resize it so I just erased the whole drive (using the Mandrake installer) and ended up with one partition on the drive and no other operating system. Here's what I wrote already on the other message board:

Mandrake Linux 9.1 on the Dell Inspiron 2650 laptop.

I recently installed Mandrake Linux 9.1 ("Download Edition") on my Dell Inspiron 2650 laptop . This was from a two CD set that came with the June 2003 issue 41 of Linux Format magazine. A third CD also came with the issue which included a new version of the GIMP with 400 plugins, a help section with Linux tutorials, Nvidia drivers for all models with an installer, etc.

The video works without the need to manually go through the process of installing video drivers (separate from the Linux installation). Apparently working Nvidia drivers were included with it. During installation at one point a list of Nvidia drivers were displayed with GeForce2 DDR highlighted, so I clicked next to accept it and go on to the next step. The laptop has a GeForce2 Go card which I think has DDR (double data rate) SDRAM from what I remember. I set it up to work with the KDE desktop by default. At first the desktop didn't fill the whole display. This apparently was because I chose 800 60Hz for the resolution during installation. After looking around I found out if I click the rectangular icon with the star in it on the desktop it takes me into the Mandrake Control Center. From there I can get into 'Hardware' and change the resolution. I changed it to 1024 X 768 Flat Panel and then logged out and logged back in (rebooted?). After that the desktop completely filled the display. The resolution can be set to 16 bit color, 24 bit color or lower resolutions. The sound works, too. I haven't tried connecting to the internet yet. All the hardware seems to be recognized. I looked in the Mandrake Control Center and was able to display the company name and model number of each piece of hardware, ie. hard drive, CDROM, video card, modem, ethernet card, etc. I looked at some pictures from a floppy disk that I took with my digital camera before and the resolution is definately there on the laptop. Very sharp pictures. One thing I don't like about the display is the glare from lights in the background (behind me), but adjusting the display angle can reduce or eliminate it. I noticed this using Windows XP, too, which was on the laptop when I got it. The display is very finely detailed, but you have to look straight at it to see the best picture. If the display is angled too much relative to your line of sight it tends to make the display look faded out. This effect seems to be worse compared to my Phillips LCD screen (flat panel) I'm using with my desktop. The pixels are a lot smaller on the laptop, though, which gives a sharper picture. Still not quite as good as some of the best CRT monitors I've seen.

Before I installed Mandrake 9.1 I tried Morphix (July 2003 issue of Linux Format magazine) and DemoLinux (from the Complete Linux Handbook http://www.linuxformat.co.uk ) which install from CDROM without installing to the hard drive. Morphix froze during installation, so then I tried DemoLinux. DemoLinux worked and I tried KDE and Gnome, but for some reason the OS didn't recognize some things such as PCI controller, modem, sound card, etc. Mandrake 9.1 seems to be a lot better than the other two. I didn't do anything with the Linux command line. All of it involved the Mandrake installer system.

To make the laptop boot from CD, press F2 right after turning the computer on to get into setup. Use the right arrow key to highlight Boot, click enter then put CDROM at the top of the list (read directions on the right of the panel), exit and boot from the (first) CD. Some versions of Linux (including Mandrake 9.1) allow you to make a Linux boot disk (ie. in MS Windows using software on the CD) in case you can't set the computer to boot from CD.


Compare this to:

http://cragalaska.com/2650.html

http://devel-home.kde.org/~howells/inspiron/index.php

You can find more information on putting linux on an Inspiron 2650 by using http://www.google.com with keywords like "Inspiron" and "2650".

I tried connecting to the internet with the dial up modem in the laptop and couldn't get it to work. I figured this might have something to do with the laptop having a Winmodem. According to the Linux system the laptop has a PCTEL modem. I found these links on the Inspiron 2650, PCTEL and pcmcia modems. I have a US Robotics XJ5560 pcmcia card modem already and I'll try that when I get a chance. It looks like the XJ5560 works with Linux according to the fourth link. To get to the laptop's internal modem you have to remove a panel on the bottom (one screw holds it on). The internal modem probably has to be taken out before a pcmcia modem is installed.

http://www.bixnet.com/in26serp4.html

http://www.bixnet.com/56kv90pcmcim.html

pctel modem and linux:
http://linmodems.technion.ac.il/pctel-linux/

3com 56k x-jack modem XJ5560:
http://bizforums.itrc.hp.com/cm/Ques...7a778c,00.html

See also
http://www.mandrakelinux.com

If6was9 08-13-2003 09:03 PM

MP3s and wavs play on the laptop, but the volume buttons don't work. Noatun has a volume control which can be controlled with the touch pad/pointer.


Here's some links to some Dell forums.


http://forums.us.dell.com/supportfor...x&page_size=20

http://forums.us.dell.com/supportfor...d.id=linuxport

If6was9 08-25-2003 05:54 PM

I found this on page 103 of the LXF43 (August 2003) issue of Linux Format magazine:

Quote:

LXF Errata
In building the discs for the two CD version of Mandrake 9.1 on LXF issue 41, a couple of small, but important, RPM packages were left out. These were the English locale files for OpenOffice.org and the kppp modem dialer program. As a result, OpenOffice.org would not start if our locale was set to English (the default). These CDs were built using Mandrake's build system, which decides what to put on each discs, and were intended to be a full usable two disc set. We apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused some users, and you can easily fix it from the current disk by typing the following, as root

rpm -Uhv /mnt/cdrom/Magazine/Errata/Mandrake9.1/*

"Errata Fixes for issues with previous cover discs" is listed under Disc B Magazine on page 105 of the same issue. LXF issue 41 is the June 2003 issue.


I checked the directory and found these three files:

kdenetwork-kppp-3.1-31mdk.i586.rpm 607KB
OpenOffice.org-help-en-1.0.2-7mdk.i586.rpm 12,401KB
OpenOffice.org-l10n-en-1.0.2-7mdk.i586.rpm 1,805KB

If6was9 08-25-2003 06:33 PM

Here's something about the laptop's fan and cooling system:
http://www.rlug.org/pipermail/rlug/2...ly/001981.html

I'm having the same problem as a lot of other people: no battery indicator on the desktop. If I shut down the laptop, take the battery out and push the battery test button, I can see an indication of the amount of charge from the indicator on the battery. This guy wrote a script:

Quote:

# cat /proc/acpi/battery/BAT1/info
present: yes
ERROR: Unable to read battery information

# cat /proc/acpi/battery/BAT1/alarm
alarm: unsupported

# cat /proc/acpi/battery/BAT1/state
present: yes
capacity state: ok
charging state: unknown
present rate: 0 mA
remaining capacity: 3889 mAh
present voltage: 16700 mV


http://lists.suse.com/archive/suse-l...-Dec/0199.html

If6was9 08-26-2003 05:32 AM

Kppp runs but says it can't find /dev/modem. The directory doesn't exist and I can't create one even when logged in as root. The closest that extists is /dev/md. Does anyone know if that is for the modem? There's more versions of kppp here, which might work.
http://rpms.mandrakeclub.com/rpms/KByName.html

If6was9 08-26-2003 10:43 PM

kdenetwork-kppp-3.1-31mdk is listed here
http://rpms.mandrakeclub.com/rpms/KByName.html

Also, search /dev/modem for a solution to the problem with the missing /dev/modem in Mandrake Linux.
http://www.google.com


Here's a good one:
http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...003/06/2/63896

If6was9 10-18-2003 05:15 PM

I followed the advice here and the laptop dials out and connects to my ISP:

http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...003/06/2/63896

lupin_the_3rd 10-18-2003 09:35 PM

"MP3s and wavs play on the laptop, but the volume buttons don't work. Noatun has a volume control which can be controlled with the touch pad/pointer.


Here's some links to some Dell forums.


http://forums.us.dell.com/supportfo...ux&page_size=20

http://forums.us.dell.com/supportfo...rd.id=linuxport"

use acme... you can bind the volume keys to the daemon.

If6was9 10-21-2003 10:19 PM

After playing MP3s and wav files a couple times a speaker icon appeared in the tray. Clicking it opens a volume control.


I recently found this:


Quote:

"I've been building & repairing systems for about 13 years & I'm going to start migrating my customers to Linux. I read an article about the new Windows coming out next year that specified new hardware would have to be purchased in order to run it. That was the extent of the info it provided about the issue. I figured it is probably some sort of copy protection/ snoop thing. Well, about 4 months ago I had a customer come to me with 2 new Dell PC's they wanted wiped clean & windows 98 SE put on, they came with XP. I did my usual fdisk & format of drive but every time I tried to install Win 98 during the install process it would crash out to black.

This happened every time I tried & I used the latest drive management software to inspect the drives for hidden volumes, nothing. The original Win XP went right back in. I believe Dell has already incorporated this copy protection/snoop system into the motherboard."

# posted by Vox @ Monday, October 20, 2003
http://www.geocities.com/milkmandan2...opoliLinux.htm

If6was9 10-26-2003 05:05 PM

There seems to be a problem with Mandrake 9.2 and LG CD-ROMs.
http://forum.microsuck.com/cgi-bin/u...c&f=5&t=002292

http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=0...7&threshold=-1

http://www.mandrakelinux.com/en/errata.php3

bolinux 10-26-2003 06:27 PM

Go to http://www.linux-laptop.net to find out about linux on your laptop.

If6was9 05-21-2004 12:24 PM

This thread is still here. I noticed another thread on Conexant modems. A number of people have commented on Linuxant charging people money now for drivers. I still have some drivers for the Mandrake 2.4.** (or whatever (Mandrake 9.1)) kernal. I got one of them to work on the Inspiron 2650. Note the information in this thread on configuring the modem.

perry 05-30-2004 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by If6was9
This thread is still here. I noticed another thread on Conexant modems. A number of people have commented on Linuxant charging people money now for drivers. I still have some drivers for the Mandrake 2.4.** (or whatever (Mandrake 9.1)) kernal. I got one of them to work on the Inspiron 2650. Note the information in this thread on configuring the modem.
i have a dell inspiron 7500 and have been running win98, win2k and mandrake 9.1 dl for quite some time. as of this week, the entire system has been completely reinstalled (not once but several times - just one of those weeks)... however, right now i'm trying my luck with 10.0 dl and as well, i got win98 & win2k to actually share a partition. i'm thinking about putting xp on their for badness but other than that i'm hoping 10.0 will be really worth the effort

but why i writing this is that my 7500 was cutting edge when i got it. it's claim to fame wasn't so much the 8 mb ati rage mobility card but the 1400x1050 resolution on the display, the highest for it's day. the point is, is that mandrake 9.1 always had no problem with that or anything attached to the laptop. except the ethernet connection which i'd always have to reset once i got logged on. 9.0 and 9.2 never had that problem, we'll see how 10.0 does shortly...

thanks for your rather detailed posting, let us know how you make out with your dell and mandrake

- perry

If6was9 09-03-2004 08:43 AM

I found this thing somewhere and saved it.



A global positioning on Windows and other OS's.


Hidden Connections Microsoft Windows XP connects with other computers, or expects to be allowed through the user's firewall, in more than 16 ways. Network security is something the computer user and the operating system supplier need to do together. Microsoft seems to show little sensitivity to the user's security needs. It is expensive to evaluate the present privacy and security vulnerabilities of these connections and impossible to evaluate the future vulnerabilities.
The issue is not that the connections are always bad for the user. The issue is that Microsoft has moved from making operating systems that are independent to making operating systems that are dependent on its own computers, and dependent on having access through the firewall. Besides possible privacy and security vulnerabilities, this new policy raises numerous concerns. For example, if Microsoft decided to remove the
support for Windows XP, users might be forced to upgrade. Or, Microsoft could decide to ask for monthly payment for the use of its computers. Windows 98 does not connect to Microsoft's computers. Microsoft Windows 98 runs completely independently of other computers. Windows XP connects to Microsoft's computers, or expects to be allowed through the user's firewall in at least 16 ways.Microsoft Windows XP is dependent for its operation on other computers that the user does not own and cannot control.
Here is a (probably incomplete) list of ways Windows XP connects each user's computer to Microsoft's computers, or expects to be allowed through the user's firewall:
Application Layer Gateway Service (Requires server rights.)
Fax Service
File Signature Verification
Generic Host Process for Win32 Services (Requires server rights.)
Microsoft Direct Play Voice Test
Microsoft Help and Support Center
Microsoft Help Center Hosting Server (Wants server rights.)
Microsoft Management Console
Microsoft Media Player (Tells Microsoft the music and videos you like. See the February 20, 2002 Security
Focus article Why is Microsoft watching us watch DVD movies? http://online.securityfocus.com/archive/1/257283
[securityfocus.com].)
Microsoft Network Availability Test
Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service
Microsoft Windows Media Configuration Utility (Setup_wm.exe, sometimes runs when you use Windows Media Player.)
MS DTC Console program
Run DLL as an app (There is no indication about which DLL or which function in the DLL.)
Services and Controller app
Time Service, sets the time on your computer from Microsoft's computer. (This can be changed to get the time from another time server.) There are other ways that Microsoft keeps control: Microsoft Office keeps a number in each file you create with Visual Basic macros that identifies your computer. Microsoft Office 97 keeps an identifying number even if there are no macros. (The free and excellent Open Office
http://www.openoffice.org [openoffice.org] does not have this problem, even when it uses the Microsoft file formats.
Microsoft mouse software has reduced functionality until you let it connect to Microsoft computers. This is not a complete list. There are other issues. For example, Microsoft has invented a new protocol, for example, one that bypasses present firewalls. The new protocol isn't documented in this article yet. To generate the above list yourself, disable Microsoft's firewall and use the Zone Labs http://www.zonelabs.com
[zonelabs.com] ZoneAlarm firewall, which is free for personal use. The free version is located at the link Download FREE ZoneAlarm http://www.zonelabs.com/store/conten...eDownload.jsp.
(Note that Ad-Aware http://www.lavasoftusa.com/ is considered the best spyware removal program, and it is free.)
When Windows XP tries to connect to Microsoft, ZoneAlarm will display a dialog box asking whether that is okay. If you say no to some of the requests, some functions of Windows XP will not work (such as networking). An article from Microsoft called Managing Automatic Updating and Download Technologies in Windows XP
http://www.microsoft.com/WindowsXP/p...ageautoupdate/ [microsoft.com] mentions 11 ways in which Windows XP components automatically download software from Microsoft computers. The article says, "Outlined below is a list of components, applications, and technologies discussed in this whitepaper that have the
ability to automatically download and install updated software and information from the Internet." Note that this does not say that the 11 are the only ways that Microsoft XP connects with Microsoft's computers. It says that the 11 are the only ones "discussed in this whitepaper". The Microsoft article tells how to disable the hidden downloading. However, the disabling is very time-consuming. Also, Microsoft has a history of using defect fixes and security fixes to change the operating system settings. This means that all the settings would need to be checked after every defect fix or security vulnerability fix.

Why so many defects? The fact that Windows XP makes your computer dependent on Microsoft computers is bad not only because you lose control over your computer, but because Microsoft produces defective software and doesn't patch defects quickly.
For example, on December 9, 2002, there were 19 security vulnerabilities
http://www.pivx.com/larholm/unpatched/ [pivx.com] in Microsoft's internet browser, Microsoft Internet Explorer. Some of these defects allow a malicious web site designer to "execute arbitrary commands, read local files, and do anything the user can ... do to his machine". Here is the recent record. The list of defects has been similar for years. Also, this is a record only of security defects, not all defects:
June 18, 2002: 18 vulnerabilities
August 8, 2002: 22 vulnerabilities
September 9, 2002: 19 vulnerabilities
November 19, 2002: 32 vulnerabilities
December 9, 2002: 19 vulnerabilities. (Microsoft fixed 15 on Nov. 20, but two new ones were found.) This is a terrible record for a company that has $40 billion in the bank. Obviously, with that kind of money, Microsoft could fix the defects if it wanted to fix them. Since the defects are very public and Microsoft has the money, it seems reasonable to suppose that top management at Microsoft has deliberately decided that some
defects should remain. The defects in Internet Explorer are examples in only one program. All of Microsoft's software seems to be of comparable quality. See, for example, the Microsoft Crash Gallery http://www.scorpioncity.com/mscrash.shtml.
The security vulnerabilities are often very public. For one of many examples, see the December 21, 2001 Associated Press article published by USA Today, XP flaw due to 'buffer overflow' http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/t...-overflows.htm [usatoday.com]. There are a variety of plausible reasons why Microsoft would allow so many defects in its software. Since Microsoft has a virtual monopoly, it is enormously profitable to sell users sloppily written software, and then later
sell them upgrades to that software. It also seems possible that there is a connection between the huge number of defects and the U.S. government's friendly treatment of Microsoft's law-breaking http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/f3800/msjudgex.htm [usdoj.gov]. The U.S. government's CIA and FBI and NSA departments spy on the entire world, and unpatched vulnerabilities in Microsoft software help spies.
Another theory is that the quality of management at Microsoft is so poor that the company simply cannot motivate its programmers to do better. One of the causes of security vulnerabilities is called "unchecked buffer", in which a program takes input, but does not check the input before it is used. A search using the Google search engine for
web pages at Microsoft sites exclusively about "unchecked buffer" http://www.google.com/search?q=unche...:microsoft.com
shows hundreds of entries. This and other indicators suggest that Microsoft may have for years allowed its programmers to submit sloppy programming, and now problems are difficult to find and fix.

NEXT (Your post is more then 10000 characters long, this caused me to have a long good laugh, sorry folks)


NEXT1

A government that uses Microsoft software is not an independent government. Any government that wants to be independent of the United States government, and any government that represents itself as controlled by its own people, cannot use Microsoft operating systems or other Microsoft proprietary systems. This because Microsoft won't allow customers to see the source code of its software. The "source code" of software is the instructions to the computer that the programmer writes. Most software companies, not just Microsoft, have been unwilling to show anyone their source code because they feel that would help someone else make a competing product. However, now governments are beginning to recognize the problems. Presently, the biggest problem is that a government cannot know what is in proprietary software. Accepting proprietary software is equivalent to accepting outside control. The government of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales) is considering these
issues, also. A policy called Open Source Software, Use within U.K. Government
http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=2190 issued on July 15, 2002 by the U.K. Office of Government Commerce says, (Scroll down almost to the bottom of the page; there is no need to use the links.) "Security of government systems is vital. Properly configured OSS can be at least as secure as proprietary systems, and OSS is currently subject to fewer Internet attacks. A balance needs to be struck between the availability of security administration skills and the advantages of many diverse systems. In some cases mainstream proprietary products may be significantly less secure than open source alternatives (see Gartner report Nimda Worm shows you can't always patch fast enough dated 19/9/01 by John Pescatore)."

In the United States, Microsoft has considerable political power. It has been estimated that the cost to U.S. businesses for only four Windows-based infections, Nimda, Code Red, SirCam and Love Bug, was about $13 billion. These infections were possible because of the unusually poor security design of Microsoft Windows. No
other operating system has had such vulnerability. However, the U.S. government seems to be taking little or no action to correct the problem. One reason may be that there is an unusually close relationship between Microsoft and top U.S. government agencies. For example, Howard Schmidt, vice chairman of the White House's National Critical Infrastructure Protection Board, was previously Microsoft's chief security officer. Scott Charney, Microsoft's current security officer, is a former federal official.

"The larger question, which the [U.S.] government seems to be ignoring, is, why aren't we looking at the problems caused by a monoculture, a single operating system which serves as a single point of failure on the Internet? If there are 60,000 Windows viruses, fewer than 100 Mac viruses, and maybe a dozen Unix viruses, why aren't the problems with Windows an issue?"

The U.S. Department of Justice maintains an index of the current case, United States v. Microsoft Current Case
http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/ms_index.htm [usdoj.gov].
The case was decided on November 1, 2002. Section J on page 7 of the final decree, which begins "No provision of this Final Judgment shall", is interpreted by most technically knowledgeable people to mean that basically there is no penalty for Microsoft, because all of Microsoft's abusive behavior is allowed.

Because of the common perception that Microsoft has broken U.S. law and yet not been forced to pay a significant penalty, there is considerable resentment of Microsoft. Microsoft is considered by many to have participated in corrupting the U.S. government, partly through giving money to politicians http://www.opensecrets.org/industrie...ib.asp?Ind=B12 [opensecrets.org]. The outcome of the case may increase the distrust of Microsoft and hasten the rate at which companies change to other operating systems, such as RedHat Linux http://www.redhat.com/ and Mandrake Linux http://www.linux-mandrake.com/en/, and other office software, such as the excellent (free!!!) Open Office http://www.openoffice.org [openoffice.org].
Companies don't want to use software from an organization that is not trustworthy because software can be programmed to have hidden operations. Mandrake and RedHat Linux and Open Office are publicly designed and supported software, and are completely free.

The anti-trust case was started partly because of Microsoft's aggressive actions toward Netscape, a company that made an Internet browser and Internet server software. It is interesting to note that Microsoft lost that contest anyway. Many people consider that Mozilla http://www.mozilla.org/ is the best browser and e-mail software, and that Apache http://www.apache.org/ [apache.org] is the best Internet server software. These are both publicly supported, free programs. Apache server is the most popular Internet server software in the world.

Wanting more control, and a desire for control that cannot be controlled, is a common psychological problem. For example, dictators of governments often test the limits until they destroy themselves.

There is no need to apologize for using Microsoft software, as many people do who know a lot about computers. The correct solution to abuse is persuading the abuser to stop being abusive. Rather than feel embarrassed because Microsoft is abusive, action needs to be taken to prevent the abuse. If you protest effectively against Microsoft abuse, you are not against Microsoft; you are more pro-Microsoft than Bill Gates.

December 10, 2002, by Michael Jennings
There are much more interesting titbits to harvest in:
http://www.hevanet.com/peace/microsoft.htm
============================================================================


Well, this page is spitfull of possible fixes to Microsoft 98, ME, 2000 and SP PROBLEMS! :

http://www.users.qwest.net/~careyh/fixes.htm :

Problem: My firewall (zone alarm) is telling me that explorer.exe is trying to connect to 239.255.255.250 port 1900. Anybody know anything about this?
Possible Solution: Take a look at this MSKB article, it may help.
Q262458 - Description of Universal Plug and Play Features in Windows Me
http://support.microsoft.com/support.../Q262/4/58.asp
Q276507 - How to Enable the Universal Plug and Play Feature in Windows Millennium Edition
http://support.microsoft.com/support.../Q276/5/07.asp

OFFCOURSE, you should do this: http://grc.com/UnPnP/UnPnP.htm

And then you find out that this 239.255.255.250 IP nr is still very much wanted by your Win OS, so then you block that whole address in ZoneAlarmPro. I know you all are very knowledgeable computer users by now, so good luck. LT/

If6was9 09-03-2004 07:34 PM

I tried a couple of other versions of linux on the Inspiron 2650 (Mandrake 9.2 & 10.0, Suse 9.0, Lindows 4.5 and Xandros 2.0). Two live (runs from CD) versions I tried are Suse 9.0 (a little slow) and Dynabolic (OK). All of these except Xandros 2.0 (from Ebay) came with issues of either Linux Format magazine or Linux User magazine. I couldn't get my EZDrive USB flash hard drive working on any of them. On the xandros.com forum I collected a lot of information about USB devices and made a list (shown below). I got a PNY smartmedia card reader (my camera uses smartmedia cards), tried it with Mandrake 9.2, Suse 9.0, Xandros 2.0 and Dynabolic and found it works with all of them. It didn't work with Mandrake 9.1. I got two more Inspiron 2650 hard drive caddies from Ebay, which allows me to swap hard drives without having to have to unscrew one hard drive from the caddy and screwing the other hard drive into the same caddy. I also tried installing Windows 2000 on the Inspiron 2650 (came with Windows XP originally) and found that all the drivers on the drivers CD which came with the laptop, except the Conexant drivers, work with both Windows 2000 and XP (see conexant.com for drivers). Windows 2000 does not need to be activated. I'm thinking of trying Cooperative Linux (came with Linux Format magazine July 2004) which installs in either Windows 2000 or XP. I tried it with Windows 98 on a desktop, but it didn't work.

My Hotdrive model HD1-U2 laptop hard drive case to USB device (offered on Ebay a lot) worked with Xandros 2.0, but it could only read the first partition out of 3 partitions on the hard drive. Windows 98 sees all of the FAT32 partitions with the HD1-U2, but doesn't detect any linux partitions. I didn't try it with any other versions of linux.

I've been using the Partition Commander Restart Disc 2 and Partitioning Disc (bootable floppy) for partitioning the hard drive. This is the best partitioning program I've tried. Using a partitioning utility from a bootable floppy has the advantage that you don't need an OS to run it. I tried installing linux (in linux partitions) on a 20 GB hard drive which had a couple of FAT32 partitions on it. The HD1-U2 can be used to transfer data to the FAT32 partitions, ie. from a desktop via USB, and then the hard drive can be put back into the Inspiron 2650. The FAT32 partitions can be accessed in linux using a file manager or by creating short cuts on the desk top.

I was thinking of trying the System Commander (personal edition) multiboot loader which comes on the Partition Commander CD that I have. Windows 2000, Mandrake 9.2, Suse 9.0 and a couple of FAT32 partitions are on the 20 GB hard drive. It only boots to Windows 2000 now.

I got a version of Win4Lin 3.0 (for installing Win95/98/Me in linux) from Ebay and was able to download an upgraded version for Mandrake 9.1. I haven't tried installing it yet. One person I emailed at netraverse.con was very helpful with information on this.

BTW, the reason I installed Mandrake 9.2 was to see if the Conexant (Linuxant) Mandrake 9.1 drivers work with 9.2. I haven't tried that yet either.



Xandros USB devices (collected from xandros.com)

--------------------------------------------
Davepet

Every USB device I've tried has worked flawlessly:

HP Printer
Microtek scanner
Oly Camera
PNY smartmedia card reader
logitech optical wheel mouse

--------------------------------------------
rberkley

I have a jumpdrive (Lexar) that works better in Xandros than in Win, although I had to have it in the usb port at install to get xandros to play nice with it.

On the other hand, I have an IDE>>USB harddrive that I can't get xandros to shake hands with. Any thoughts foks?
--------------------------------------------
Ed Richards

I have a NexDisk 128 and a SanDisk Mini Cruiser 256 and both work great with Xandros.
--------------------------------------------
GregA

I also have a Lexis Multi Card Reader and a USB 2.0 Flash Drive (Fuji 256mb) and both work perfect in Xandros 1 & 2. Just plug in and XFM shows as removable drive. My PC mobo only supports USB 1.1, but the high speed Fuji works great anyway.
--------------------------------------------
GregA

I don't know if this will help, as I suspect the issues are not with the USB flash drive itself, but with the PC hardware io - BUT - I've been using a FUJI Flash drive USB v2.0 (256mb) on two different 1.1 PC's with NO issues at all. In fact, the functionality is better and more reliable by far than with win98, and even better than XP home (which freezes occasionally when inserting the stick). Perhaps a 16 or 32 mb would be a relatively inexpensive way to test. As info, the systems I use are HP & Compaq.
--------------------------------------------
carbon_unit

I use a "Lexar media128MB Jumpdrive secure" and it works perfectly without doing anything except plugging it in.

I also have a Creative Muvo2 which is supposed to mount like a USB flash drive, and it does in windows and fedora but not in Xandros.
But it does get better in each version of Xandros, OCE actually sees it and puts in a removable drive but I cannot access it. iIt will probably work in the next version.
--------------------------------------------
lgharriman

I just purchased a LEXAR Multi-Card Reader media# RW017-P Rev. A. I plugged it into my USB port and it was immediately recognized. It shows the devices as Removable Drives 1-4.
There are 4 slots on the unit. It supports the following formats: Compact Flash Type I & II, Memory Stick, SmartMedia, MultimediaCard, and SD Card. The unit is a dark translucent green with drivers for Windoze & Mac systems. It also has the ability to write back to the cards plugged in. I haven't tried reading from one and copying to the other format, but I will.
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tstroud

I have a Microtech Snapshot USB CF reader and it shows up in file manager just fine. No Problems, just plugged it in and it worked.
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Davepet

I have a PNY tech Smartmedia USB card reader. I can Read & write to it in XFM just like any other drive.
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tony

I have SanDisk ImageMate Model# SDDR-31 with an USB connector. Xandros File managers found it with no problem at all. Works great!
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JimParks

I have a Dazzle* compact flash reader and it works 5/5
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ellisol

I have a OmniFlash Uno USB Smart Media reader it works great. Omni Flash supports Linux and has many types of media readers. $20.

(dcfxq having problems with this)
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Chrisw

After you have the kernel recognizing your drive run the following as root:

#detect detect_removable
#xangenautotab

the last command will return something like:
TRACE: automount.c:gen_autofs_map:152: 4 devices found for autofs.

the number should match the count of "removable" devices including floppy, dvd(rw), and cd(rw) drives.

Now close all open filemanagers and you can access your drive just like a cd or floppy!

NOTE: this should also work for firewire disks, flash readers, thumb drives, and any digital cameras that give a SCSI device.

HINT: first time you run this plug in as many devices as you can so you will have all the removeable ports you could ever need.
--------------------------------------------
Ironphil

I have a Apacer handy steno 256 MB and it is instantly recognised by Xandros when I plug it in and I can see a removable disk in xfm. The problem is that I can't access the subfolders of my flash drive from xfm, it stays at the root of the drive forever. If I go in a console, then go to /var/autofs/zip.1/zip.1/ then I can browse the subdirectories and copy files from them from the command line of from mc. Is it a bug or a limitation of xfm, or maybe isn't my drive properly supported ? Any ideas?

When I browse in the console I am logged on as a regular user. Strangely, I can only do it when the content of the flash device is shown in xfm, if xfm is not displaying the content, the second zip.1 folder desappears. So if I display the content of the root folder of the flash device in xfm, then start a second xfm and go to /var/autofs/zip.1/zip.1 I can then browse the subfolders of the flash device with xfm !!! That is way to get around the problem but a total newbie would have trouble finding it.
Thanks for your comments, it made me look deeper and I found something. Next... the (censored) HP PSC printer who doesn't want to print!
--------------------------------------------
justwally

Here are all the USB ThumbDrive/JumpDrive Key threads that appear to be close enough in nature to be considered one subject...

http://forums.xandros.com/viewtopic.php?p=43808#43808

http://forums.xandros.com/viewtopic.php?t=4922

http://forums.xandros.com/viewtopic....&highlight=usb

http://forums.xandros.com/viewtopic....&highlight=usb

http://forums.xandros.com/viewtopic.php?p=43810#43810

http://forums.xandros.com/viewtopic....&highlight=usb
--------------------------------------------
Andrew

The Lexar JumpDrive Trio is a USB memory card reader that is shaped like a thumb drive. I've used it with a laptop running Xandros with no problems, I just pluged it in and it showed up in the file manager. Recently I tried it with my desktop and the LED on the reader lights up, but nothing shows up in the file manager

I can "see" it in the Hardware Information section of the Control Center.

I've tried:
mount -a
Restore Xandros
Ensuring I've installed the "Hardware Detection" update.
Plugging into different USB ports.

My motherboard is an Asus A7V333.

I can't see why it works on the laptop and not on the desktop system.

---

Using the following command worked for me:

mount /dev/scsi/host1/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 /mnt/JumpDrive

You'll need to create the /mnt/JumpDrive directory.

Thanks to cw for his help in the IRC.

---
rberkley

I have a JumpDrive secure, 256mb, and I tried the below & it worked 1x, but then
never again.

>Using the following command worked for me:
>mount /dev/scsi/host1/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 /mnt/JumpDrive
>You'll need to create the /mnt/JumpDrive directory.

Any thoughts? For some reason, Xandros keeps mounting the JumpDrive as the
zip drive (zip1) that I *do not* have attached to this pc.
--------------------------------------------
me:
Inspiron 2650 with Xandros Deluxe 2

with EZdrive:

/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/cd
and
/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/generic
both exist

message: /dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/generic is not a block device
---
PNY USB Smartmedia Card Reader works (bought on Ebay July 2004)
Windows 98,2000,Me and Mac OS 8.6 compatible
Revision 08-1-01 (on inside of card)
Revision 09-01 (on inside of card under other products)
--------------------------------------------


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